MYZANTHA LUTEA, Gould.
Lute oils Honey-eater.
Myzantha lutea, Gould in Proc. of Zool. Soc., Part VII. p. 134.
I c o n s id e r this to be by far the finest species of the genus yet discovered, exceeding as it does every other
both in size and in the brilliancy of its colouring. I am indebted to Messrs. Bynoe and Dring for fine
specimens of this beautiful bird, which were obtained by those gentlemen on the north-west coast of
Australia, in which part of the country it supplies the place o f the Myzantha garrula o f New South Wales.
The law of representation is rarely carried out in a more beautiful manner, even in the ornithology of
Australia, than in the members of the present genus; the Myzantha garrula being, so far as is yet known,
confined to the south-eastern portion of the country, the M. lutea to the neighbourhood of the north coast,
the Myzantha obscura to Swan River on the western coast, and the M. Jlavigula to the north-eastern
portion of the country.
Naked space behind ,the eye, forehead and the tips o f several feathers on the sides of the neck, fine citron-
yellow ; lores blackish brown with silvery reflexions; upper surface grey, the feathers o f the back o f the
neck and back crossed near the tip with white; rump, upper tail-coverts and under surface white; throat
and chest tinged with grey, each feather crossed by an arrow-shaped mark of brown; wings and tail brown,
the external margins of the feathers dull citron-yellow; tail tipped with white; bill fine citron-yellow; feet
yellowish brown.
The Plate represents the two sexes of the natural size